RU Pokemon of the Week: Cinccino

I actually have swarm on my durant because of the hustle misses! Anyway, there are really 2 barely viable sets for Durant, the iron head, X-scissor, superpower and stone edge/rock slide with Swarm or hustle, or the less common set coming up.
Durant @leftovers
Trait: Truant
-Entrainment
-Hone claws
-Baton pass
-Iron head/X-scissor

Now I myself have never got this to work, but I've seen some more experienced friends wreck well-built teams with this Durant. Since I have never used it, I don't have much more to say, just, you know, wanted to bring it up!

Swords Dance Feraligatr is and always has been one of the most dangerous Pokemon in the tier when left unchecked. Feraligatr uses its great bulk and decent defensive typing to set up a Swords Dance against most opponents, and if the opponent is unlucky enough to knock Feraligatr down to the Torrent sweet spot, their gonna have a hard time stopping Gatr from sweeping their team. Life Orb gives Feraligatr more power on all of its attacks in exchange for some hp every time it attacks, while Mystic water still boosts the power of Feraligatr's Water-type moves (but not Return/Crunch!) while eliminating the recoil that Gatr suffers from when using Life Orb.

Sadly, i'd say Feraligatr is a fallen star in the BW2 RU metagame, while its still a perfectly good Pokemon that can sweep any unprepared team, its starting to fall out of usage as players start to gravitate to Kabutops as their Water-type of choice. Kabutops has a strong secondary STAB in the form of Stone Edge to use, so it can get past many of the threats that Feraligatr struggles with, to make matters worse for Feraligatr, Kabutops is also the best Rapid Spinner RU has to offer, OHKOing every available Ghost-type Pokemon in the tier after a boost. Even NU star Samurott gives Feraligatr competition as a physical Water-type, as its capable of OHKOing Gatr's best counter: Tangrowth with ease with a +2 Megahorn. Nonthenless, if you play Swords Dance Feraligatr to its strengths (It has Torrent and some bulk over Kabutops, and it has more Speed and hits slightly harder than Samurott) it's still an excellent option for any RU team in need of a Physical Water-type, and a big threat that any team should be prepared for.

Im interested in how well Dragon Dance Feraligatr can perform in the current RU metagame, it recieves competition from Crawdaunt, who hits much harder, but Feraligatr has a significant amount of Speed over the grumpy crayfish, allowing it to outspeed Sceptile, who can revenge kill Crawdaunt with ease, as well as a slew of other threats. Feraligatr also has bulk over Crawdaunt, making it easier to set up. So, has anyone used Dragon Dance Feraligatr lately? If so, how did it do? Was it effective? Or should we wait until sheer force gets released and pray it'll be usable with DD?

Ah, Feraligatr. It's a perfectly good Pokemon... but I fear that it simply faces too much competition. When I want to use a physical SD Water-type, I immediately think: why not use Kabutops? The shellfish is both faster and more powerful, has powerful Rock-STAB which grants it lovely neutral coverage and nice resists to Flyig and the ability to come in on Flare Blitz with much more ease. Then there's also Rapid Spin, as Kabutops generally doesn't have to run Waterfall, as it can rely on Stone Edge for a powerful STAB move. Then we also have Crawdaunt and Samurott. Crawdaunt agains boasts dual STAB with excellent coverage, and quite a bit more power. Samurott has the ability to feign a special set and lure in physically frail walls, not to mention the ability to smash through Tangrowth, Feraligatr's biggest counter. When considering these, it's not easy to justify using Feraligtr on a team. Dragon Dance is a more interesting set, but again faces stiff competition from Crawdaunt. The difference between them is that Feraligtr isn't as easily picked off by priority, and has the ability to outspeed Sceptile even with a neutral nature, which Crawdaunt would kill to have, as well as better physical bulk which can aid in setting up.

However, there IS a niche that Feraligtr can occupy, and one that I feel is not explored enough. Double Dancing. I know that this strategy may seem questionale when Feraligatr has access to a priority move in Aqua Jet for faster opponents, but fact is, a +1 Waterfall is far more powerful than a +2 Aqua Jet. RU is a tier where so many playstyles are available, and this means that the Feraligtr user can easily identify what kind of team the opponent is using in Team Preview, and boost accordingly. It goes without saying that slower bulkier teams fall to Swords Dance, while more offensive teams can be dispatched by a Dragon Dance boost. Here's the set that I plan on testing:

Return is probably the best move for the last slot, as it gets the best neutral coverage with Feraligtr's STAB, and will OHKO Sceptile at +1 after Stealth Rock 100% of the time, and almost always without (98.31 - 115.87%) which is quite impressive indeed. For this reason, Ice Punch isn't really needed. The EVs allow Feraligtr to outspeed Sceptile at +1 as well. Crunch is an opton I guess, but is noticeably weaker than Return on everything that is neutral to it. It's only real use is to hit Slowking, but that can be Pursuited or played around. After a Swords Dance, Feraligtr deals 70.73 - 83.46% to standard mixed tank Slowking anyway, which can KO with some hazards and a goog damage roll. It's not like Slowking can KO Feraligtr back anyway. So yeah, I think that DoubleDance Feraligtr has potential, and I can't wait to try it out!

Galvantula is one of my favorite Pokemon in RU and is a great cleaner thanks to that nice base 108 Speed and shabby base 97 Special Attack.

The best set for Galvantula that needs the least amount of support is the Life Orb-Offensive set, which can take advantage of the holes left by stronger special attackers like Moltres. Galvantula works better than Manectric as an all-out attacker thanks to a slightly higher Speed and a reliable, stronger STAB. The duel STAB combo has nice offensive synergy hitting the majority of the tier, but does have trouble with Pokemon like Lanturn and Nidoqueen. Stealth Rock is the biggest thorn in Galvantula's side and one of the reasons why Manectric is sometimes used over it.

Galvantula is a great early- to mid-game scout with Volt Switch slowly wearing down specially bulky Pokemon, so it can sweep end-game. Access to Giga Drain means that Galvantula doesn't need to use a Hidden Power to hit Rhydon or Piloswine, and can reserve that to hit Nidoqueen and Lanturn.

Has anyone tried SubAgility with Petaya Berry, Electro Ball and Bug Buzz, with Swarm as the ability? After an Agility Electro Ball has great damage potential (here is how it works: http://www.smogon.com/bw/moves/electro_ball), and a +1 Swarm boosted Bug Buzz is just scary. Could be worth a shot, but hazard support and the elimination of priority users beforehand are mandatory.

RU Co-Leader

Galvantula is the very definition of a glass cannon, imo. Galvantula comes equipped with two very good STABs to work with (Electric and Bug are both excellent, and they provide damn good coverage when used together), a great base 108 Speed stat, allowing it to outspeed the vast majority of the unboosted metagame, and the ability compoundeyes, which while usually being a mediocre ability on most Pokemon, is actually really good on Galvantula as it can now use Thunder as its main Electric STAB without fear of missing every second hit. Galvantula can even function as a good scout thanks to Volt Switch, which is always nice. Sadly, Galvantula has a few crippling flaws that prevent it from being a top tier Pokemon, imo. For one thing, Galvantula is really frail, 70/60/60 defenses are pretty bad tbh, and this makes it very hard to switch Galvantula in on a neutral attack without taking 60%+, while making it more vulnerable to priority such as Entei's Extremespeed and Absol's Sucker Punch as well. To make matters worse, Galvantula is also cursed with a weakness to Stealth Rock, which strips off 25% of its hp every time it comes in, and Galvantula has no way to heal off this damage other than Giga Drain, which it wont always get the chance to use, combine this with the Life Orb recoil Galvantula takes from attacking, and it becomes clear that Galvy isnt built to last. Of course, this doesnt mean Galvantula is a bad Pokemon! in fact, its just the opposite, being a great choice as a special attacker, just be sure to account for Galvantula's fraility when using it, as it needs some way around this to function to its full potential.

Ok, kinda felt I had to comment on this, since Galvantula is one of my guilty pleasure 'mons in this tier, and with 'Queen potentially ('~') leaving the tier it could only get better. I'd have to second most of Molk's points in terms of its frailty and SR weakness making it out to be the poster child of glass cannons, though the offensive synergy between Galvantula and Kabutops somewhat mitigates this (Steelix is still obnoxious :< ). Its respectable speed tier and solid Special Attack stat, complimented by really useful dual STAB (+moderately accurate Thunders), make it a very dangerous threat to many teams when played well. Notwithstanding I've found my most success using Galvantula was with a Life Orb Sub+3 Attacks variant (iirc I posted this elsewhere before, but it's relevant here too :>). As is Galvantula rarely finds multiple opportunities to switch in without continuous Rapid Spin support and properly executed switches, and I have found Substitute to be a much more effective tool to capitalizing on the switches it forces, while also preventing Pokemon such as Entei and Absol from forcing it out with their priority attacks. I've had great success with this set, and if anybody has their reservations I'd encourage you to try it for yourself ^_^

Anyways, Spiritomb here can pull off a variety of roles, including spinblocking, trapping, revenge killing, and generally just fucking about with your opponent. So, how do you use it, and what are it's best sets, teammates, counters, etc.?

This is easily the most common Spiritomb set (although its arguable if its the best, Spiritomb has a ton of sets despite its seemingly abysmal offensive movepool). This Spiritomb set functions as team support, trapping and eliminating many common Pokemon such as Uxie, Accelgor, Slowking, Gallade, Rotom-N, Sigilyph, and Medicham, among others. While also being able to revenge kill many Pokemon in a pinch with its access to dual priority while the threat of Pursuit keeps the threat Spiritomb is trying to revenge kill from switching out. These unique qualities grant offensive Spiritomb a slot on countless teams as a utility check or "glue Pokemon" ,consistently getting rid of opposing Pokemon that might trouble the opposing team. Spiritomb also makes the perfect teammate for the various Fighting-type Pokemon available in the tier, as Spiritomb is incredibly efficient and getting rid of or at least weakening their counters, clearing the way for a late game Hitmonlee or Gallade sweep the vast majority of the time. Last, but not least, Spiritomb is a very solid spinblocker as well as spinblocking goes in RU (read, not very well, two best spinners have huge advantages). While most Ghost-types flat out lose to Kabutops and Cryogonal, Spiritomb has the ability to at least put Cryogonal into a 50/50 position with pursuit, either eliminating it as it comes out, or crippling it with Trick/Return if it stays in, putting a ton of pressure on the spinning snowflake and possibly preventing it from doing its job (Kabutops still kicks its ass afaik, though).

molk covered things nicely but i thought i'd throw out the idea of foul play, which august has been raving about lately. it's real nice vs. a lot of its common switchins, most notably entei, and hits even harder if you trick them a cb. it also murders an sd'd kabutops but it needs a bit of defense investment to survive stone edge.

Come in on something that can't hurt you and start boosting. Status doesn't matter thanks to rest. Dark pulse has decent mono coverage and no immunities. After a few calm minds you are untouchable from the special side. However, it loses hard to phasers and taunt users. This set is even better with toxic spikes support.

Pretty standard fare, but I LOVE this set. With this I tried to optimise my defensive prowess with the EVs, and some great attacking options in Shadow Sneak and Foul Play. Foul Play can catch many devastating Pokemon off guard, such as Cinccino, Kabutops, Absol, Druddigon, and Entei, just to name a few, given how they tend to have EVs or moves to pump their attack stat to ungodly levels, and focus sashes can be bypassed when you SS after. Sub prevents status nicely, and PS is nice recovery against the heftier tier threats like Lanturn and Amoonguss.

Spiritomb is one of those rare Pokemon that has a place on all archetypes of teams, ranging from Stall to pure HO. On a stall team, Spiritomb can function as a bulky spinblocker with its good defenses, which balances the mediocre HP. Although, it does face competition from Misdreavus as the "pure defensive" Ghost-type. Offensive teams utilizes Spiritomb well because they use it to take out pesky Ghost- and Psychic-types, and the priority it offers with Shadow Sneak and Sucker Punch. Defensive sets generally have a hard time due to a lack of recovery outside of RestTalk, and lack of resistances, which is why the offensive sets are more widespread with CB or BlackGlasses.

Its biggest niche from what I've seen is moreso the priority it offers rather than the Dark typing, and it has a way to still hit with Shadow Sneak if the opponent isn't attacking. The Dark-type trapper faces competition from Absol and Drapion, which are stronger and faster, but not as bulky, so pick your poison.

RU Co-Leader

Because nobody has replied to Cryogonal yet, i guess i should just take initiative and post my own opinions on it ;-;.

Cryogonal is hands down the best defensive spinner in the tier, beating the vast majority of Ghost-types lurking in RU single handedly, and hes also one of the two best offensive Rapid Spinners as well, only really getting competition from Kabutops in that role. While Cryogonal's physical bulk is absolutely horrendous and its typing leaves much to be desired, it can still provide defensive synergy with the rest of its team thanks to its access to reliable recovery, excellent special bulk, and Haze. Cryogonal also stands out as a decent check to Nidoqueen, being completely immune to Earth Power and having the special bulk to take its other coverage moves at least once bar Fire Blast, while Cryogonal can strike back with a super effective Ice Beam or Blizzard and go for the 2HKO or OHKO, respectively.

By the way, i really like Icicle Plate Cryogonal in the current metagame, while its much more vulnerable to priority and pursuit due to the lack of defensive investment, Icicle Plate Cryo makes up for it with the added power and speed, making it much easier to fit on faster paced teams that cant afford to have a slower Cryogonal killing their momentum, even for one turn. Icicle Plate is better than Life Orb on offensive Cryogonal because it reduces the amount of residual damage Cryo takes over the match, while still significantly boosting the power of its Ice STAB, which is what Cryogonal is going to be using 90% of the time anyway (when its not spinning of course!). Hidden Power Fire gives Cryogonal a way around Escavalier, who could easily switch in on Cryogonal and trap it with Pursuit otherwise, while also OHKOing Durant on the switch and doing significant damage to many of the common hail abusers, making offensive Cryo a decent hail check for a team that needs one. Hidden Power Fighting still gets the hit on the hailmons, while trading the ability to eliminate Escavalier, Durant, and Ferroseed for the ability to dispose of Aggron, Crawdaunt, and Kabutops, among others. Hidden Power Ground is also an option for overall surperior neutral coverage and the ability to threaten Qwilfish more effectively.

Overall while Cryogonal's bad typing and horrid physical bulk limit it effectiveness somewhat, its still easily one of the best Rapid Spinners on offensive and defensive teams alike, and should always be considered for a teamslot if you need a reliable way to dispose of entry hazards.

Ruiner of Alph

With horrible base stats outside of its mediocre Speed, Smeargle doesn't have a lot going for it offensively or defensively. It does offer a massive amount of utility, however, as its access to every move in the game gives it the ability to provide any sort of a support a team could need. So, what are your favorite sets, roles, teammates, and counters for this thing?

This is the typical suicide hazard lead most have come to expect from our little painter dog. Spore is to hopefully incapacitate something, helping to possibly neutralize a threat to ones team. Stealth Rock and Spikes is what it's trying to get down and against an unprepared team it's surprisingly effective at laying them down often getting down at least 2 layers then dying before a spinner can finish it off. Whirlwind is there to prevent Substitute users or set up sweepers such as Durant from ruining Smeargle's day. Positive speed nature to out run everything possible, and a negative natured attack with 0 IV's to mess with Liepard users. Max HP could give it a chance at living a weak attack, but it's poor bulk usually means it wont hold up

Teammates are pretty much any sweeper in the tier who like entry hazards to soften up walls (that is, every sweeper in the tier). Fast Volt Switch users such as Rotom-Mow can capitalize especially well on the hazards by forcing switches, further weakening the opposing team.

Counters include a pretty long list. Lum Jolly Kabutops, Lum Shell Smash Crustle with Rock Blast, or Vital Spirit users such as Primeape all can avoid spore and ko Smeargle before it can get down to many or any hazards. Sap Sipper users such as Bouffalant, Sawsbuck, and Miltank can all avoid Spore and destroy Smeargle easily however it will still be able to get up hazards on them. Multi hit users, specifically Cinccinno, is Smeargles biggest nightmare as it can outspeed and ko Smeargle before it has a chance to do anything. Sleep Talk users such as Entei can beat it as well, pretty much any team prepared for sleep can kill Smeargle without to much trouble however keeping hazards off against a good opponent can be slightly more difficult.

I <3 Smeargle. It is just so good at getting up spikes and sr early game, and that damage is really important for many, many 1 and 2HKO's, and the extra residual damage from spikes allows you to wear down esca, druddigon, steelix, qwilfish, entei etc. much quicker than with just sr. Smeargle also allows you to get momentum early game, and helps stop sr going up early game from rhydon, steelix and piloswine among others. Spore is an incredibly useful weapon, as the sleep mechanics basically mean you can never wake up if the opponent is good, since if they switch in an asleep poke, you can just go straight to another poke and force them out, wracking up hazard damage in the process. I prefer Explosion on smeargle more than whirlwind, as although it leaves you completely stuck against sub rotom and some other sub users, boom leaves a mark on a number of frail attackers hoping to set-up and still breaks the substitutes of most pokemon in the tier due to the STAB on explosion. It also helps a ton against kabutops and cryogonal. Cryo is outright 1HKO'd, and since most only aim to outspeed modest queen, smeargle usually gets the jump on them, while kabutops, if adamant, can't spin away hazards since smeargle will be dead so your hazards stay up. With whirlwind, kabutops / cryo can come in for free after a spore and unless you have a spinblocker, you're hazards will be eliminated straight away.

Basically any offensive poke will benefit from spikes, but some much more so than others. Moltres really likes spikes, allowing it to wear down rhydon, regirock and lanturn much more quickly than with just sr. Rotom-C and sceptile also appreciate from spikes, as two of their best counters, druddigon and escavalier, are grounded and much easier to wear down with spikes and sr. Rotom-C can also use volt switch to wrack up hazard damage. Having a spin-blocker, such as rotom or spiritomb, is also useful as rotom can stop sandslash from spinning, and tomb can stop cryogonal from spinning freely. Kabutops smashes straight through both of them though, and every other spinblocker for that matter.

There are lots of ways to stop smeargle setting up sr+spikes+spore, and speed ghilliesniper provided a good list above. You can also use fast taunters such as qwilfish and aerodactyl, although magic coat smeargle beats these leads. Kangaskhan and Cincinno are probably the best ways to deal with it, as they stop smeargle doing anything at all unless it is mighty scarf smeargle.

tl;dr: Smeargle is the best offensive spiker in the tier, and is excellent at doing its job and should be used much more than it is.

The problem with Smeargle is that, ironically, everyone knows your set. There's a couple other gimmicks that you can use, but in all honesty, everyone uses the same lead Spore+Hazards+Sash. Most people will just lead with something with Lum/Sleep Talk/Vital Spirit and proceed to 2hko.

Get in on something that doesn't OHKO and set up a Quiver Dance, completely fuck up mons like Rotom-A that try and get a Sub up before you can Spore them since you just Dance twice then pass. There's probably a better Speed to hit, but w/e. Rocks can be used to lure in weaker spinners, such as non-Haze Cryogonal, or Taunt or Substitute can be used to prevent stuff from statusing you or phazing you. Oh and once you pass +2/2/2 to Nidoqueen you win.